Aeroplane



March 19, 1929.

F. L. RIFFERT AEROPLANE Filed Dec. 1927 Patented Mar. 19, 1929.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE,

FRANK Il- RIFFER'I, F HAUBSTADT, INDIANA.

AEROPLANE,

Application filed December 6, 1927. Serial No. 238,142.

'engine in taking off from the ground by increasing the buoyant effect exerted by the wings and to impart buoyancy to the body.

These, and other objects appearing from the following description are acpomplished by the provision of hollow wings or planes, compartments for the body, gas contamers, a pump, pipe connections, valves, and con-, trols, enabling the pilot, or his mechaniclan, to permit lighter than air gas stored in the containers to be introduced in the wings or the body compartments, or both, selectively, or as an entirety, to increase the lifting etiect when the aeroplane is taking ofli, or to increase the polse and buoyancy of the aeroplanc when it is in midair as, for instance, slumld the engine stall and it become necessary to descend, or, to assist in supporting the plane to enable minor repairs to be made.

The invention also contemplates the provision oi means whereby the lighter than air once it has bcen'delivcred to the hollow planes and to the compartment, may be withdrawn. from them and restored to the corn Miners.

I am aware that modification may be resortcd to in carrying out the invention and i do not. therefore, limit it. to the construction which is hercinutter described and is illustrated in the. accompanying drawing, except as specified in the claims.

The accompanying drawing is a longitudinal section. partly in elevation, illustrating an aeroplane provided with the present i'm provements.

The. body of the aeroplane appears at 1 and it has upper and lower hollow planes or wings 2, 3. The wings may be oi. metal. Struts 4 connect the wings to the body.

The body is provided with encircling compartments 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, separated from each other by partitions as villustrated at 11.

Each compartment and each wing is sup plied with lighter than air gas, under suitable valve control, from the series or battery of gas containers 12 preferably arranged in the region of the central part of the body 1. The respective containers have pipes 13 connected to a main or trunk pipe 14 and each of them has a suitable valve 15, each valve having its own control, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 3.

The pipe 14 is provided with a suitable main control valve 24 which has its control 25.

The aforesaid controls are located conven iently for manipulation by 'the pilot or his mechanician.

There is a suitable pump 26 having a header 27 and operated by any suitable motor or engine 28. The engine 28 may be an electrically driven motor or an internal com bustion engine, supplied with gasoline from any suitable source and under any suitable control, whereby the pump 26 may be started or stopped at will and its operation controlled for the purpose of pumping out the gaseous contents of the containers 12 or pumping back into said containers from the wings 2, 3 and the compartments 5, 6, etc. the gas which has been previously supplied thereto.

The respective compartments 5, 6, 7, etc. and the hollow wings 2, 3, are supplied with the lighter than air gas from the header 27 by pipes 29, 30, 31, 32, 33, 34, 35, 36, the' said pipes each having its own valve 37, 38, 39, 40, 41, 42, '43, 44. Controls for these valves are shown at 45, 46, 47, 48, 49, 50, 51, 52.

It will be seen that as great a volume as desired may be obtained from the containers 12 by operating 17. 18, etc. as may be found to be necessary.

The gas issuing from-the containers which have been opencd. flows into the pipe 14 so that when the valve 24 is opened, the pump 26 may draw the gas into the header 27 for utilization in any or all of the compartments 5, 6, 7. etc, and wings 2, 3.

lVhen the is no longer needed in the compartments and wings as aforesaid, the pump 26 may be reversed so that the gas will be drawn out of the compartments and wings and forced back into the containers 1.2. Thus. by closing the valves 15 of said containers, the gas is retained therein for subsequent use.

Additional or spare gas containers may be carried by the aeroplane as illustrated at 53.

What I claim is:

1. An aeroplane having independent rigid hollow wings. independent rigid compartments encircling its body, a gas container, independent pipe connections from the conas many of the controls 16,

tainer to the wing and to the compartments whereby the gas may be independently conveyed to the respective wings or compartments, a pump for withdrawing gas from said container and introducing it independently into the wings and into the compartments and for returning the gas independently from any of them back to the container, when desired, and controlling means for determining the direction of flow of the gas and the point to which it. shall be delivered.

2. An aeroplane having a rigid hollow wing, a plurality of rigid compartments in its body, a gas container, independent pipe connections from the container to the wing and to the respective compartments, independent valves for the respective pipe connections whereby communication through said pipes may be independently controlled, and a reversible pump for Withdrawing gas from the container and selectively introducing it to the different compartments and wing, or for selectlvely returning the gas from them back to the container, at the will of the operator.

3. An aeroplane having a rigid hollow wing, a plurality of rigid compartments'in its body, a pluralityof independent gas containers each of which has a valved inlet and outlet, whereby the gas may be taken oil from any one or ones of said gas containers, independent pipe connections from the respective gas containers leading to the wing and to the respective compartments, and a reversible pump for withdrawing gas from any one of the gas containers and selectively introducing it to any one of the different compartments and the wing, or for selectively returning the gas from any one of said compartments or wing back to the container, at the will of the operator.

In testimony whereof I afiix my signature.

FRANK L. RIFFERT. 

